First, like many newbies here I want to thank everyone for all the info on raw on this forum! I have been reading through it for days and it is a wonderful source of information!

I switched my three dogs to raw about three weeks ago. Initially, I was buying the frozen patties but soon found out that they are expensive and there is much cheaper ways to go raw! So I have been gradually easing into buying my own meat from the supermarket - ground beef, chicken breasts, chicken legs, etc.

A few questions... this weekend I found some Steelheat Fillet for cheap. I haven't really found alot of info about fish, except that it should be fed only once or twice a week. Has anyone else fed this type of fish and is it safe? If not, what type of fish do you normally use?

I usually give my dogs their bones in their kennels during the day when I go to work. If they are not finished it by the time I go to let them out, should I put them back in the freezer or fridge? I know they are probably fine, but like most raw newbies I am a bit paranoid

Lastly, where do most people usually find their organs (liver, heart etc.)? I know of one grocery store here that sells it but I imagine it's quite expensive. Do you usually get them from a local butcher?

Unfortunately I don't feed raw as living in a small town there isn't anywhere I can buy meat cheaply enough to feed my dogs. I do know that you are not supposed to feed raw salmon that is caught off the West Coast however as it can have parasites that can be fatal to dogs.

De-boned Steelhead filet is fine to feed occasionally. (<---- ETA: Steelhead is not fine to feed! My error.)I prefer whole small fish such as mackerel and sardines though (soft bones plus they get all the organs too).

There are two things about your diet that concern me though, I hope you don't mind me pointing it out . Rather than ground beef, try to find huge chunks of beef that you can cut into big pieces for your dogs. For example, I feed 1 1/4 lb whole pieces to our dogs. It's much better for their teeth and gums, and contain much less surface bacteria (there's a reason why a "cook thoroughly" label is placed on packages of ground meat).

It would also seem that you're giving your guys weight bearing bones throughout the day? Those are ok for recreational chewing once every now and then but, if you've got power chewers, they can damage their teeth with them. The bone content in your dogs' meals should come from softer, easy to digest bones such as chicken carcasses (we feed half chickens minus the thighs/drumsticks...two of our guys don't digest them properly), soft pork and beef ribs, cartilage, etc. For daily recreational chewing, you can give them Kongs stuffed with cubes of raw meat and/or green tripe (not the white bleached stuff) that's been frozen overnight. Unfortunately, we can't find raw tripe here so we use the canned Trippet brand (found at most small pet supply shops).

If you can find a poultry store in your area, that would be the best place to find the cheapest and freshest chicken organs. Here's a tip: try to find poultry that's been air chilled. Water chilled poultry contains, well, lots of water and there's no point in paying for that. Before I knew the difference, I also noticed our dogs would sometimes get upset tummies from water chilled chicken as well.

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"Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance." -Will Durant

By huge chunks of beef do you mean like steaks? Correct me if I'm wrong, but do you mean to leave it whole and let them tear it apart? (I have been cutting it up for them)

I give them recreational bones about once a week in their crates when I leave for work. Currently, I am still feeding them mostly the frozen raw patties which I believe has the bones ground up in them... does that sound okay? As this is really expensive though (and as I do more research) I am gradually trying to use the patties less, and start giving them meat, organs from the store.

Also, when I take my dogs out of their crates, should I put their bones back in the fridge/freezer? I have two dogs that are food possessive so giving them bones in the evenings out of their crates is not an option (tried that once... never again, haha!)

I'm gradually switching my boys over to raw. Right now, they mostly eat kibble during the week, and get raw on weekend. At this point in time, it's what works best for our house, but I'd like to have them on full time raw eventually.

I've been going to discount grocery stores (food basics, price chopper, etc) whenever they have good sales, to stock up.
Recently, I bought a bunch of chicken quarters (which I later cut in half) and freeze them. I've also given them some beef cubes, which they really enjoy.

However tonight, in celebration of my birthday , they'll be eating fish for the first time (well, sort of - they did find a tasty fish head to eat at the cottage this summer ).

I got some frozen tilapia fillets, which are defrosting in the fridge right now. Like you, I wasn't exactly sure what kind of fish to buy. But I figured for a one-time celebration, it won't really matter regardless.
Once they're on full time raw though, and getting fish on a more regular basis, I'll definitely have to figure it out.

LP, can you please explain? As far as I know, if it is from the west coast then it may have the parasites that can be fatal.

Cr@p . Cassiek, rainbow is correct, please don't feed the Steelhead. I don't know what I was thinking . If you already have, please keep an eye out for any symptoms whatsoever and take your dogs to the vet if you notice anything at all amiss with them.

It would also seem that you're giving your guys weight bearing bones throughout the day? Those are ok for recreational chewing once every now and then but, if you've got power chewers, they can damage their teeth with them. The bone content in your dogs' meals should come from softer, easy to digest bones such as chicken carcasses (we feed half chickens minus the thighs/drumsticks...two of our guys don't digest them properly), soft pork and beef ribs, cartilage, etc. For daily recreational chewing, you can give them Kongs stuffed with cubes of raw meat and/or green tripe (not the white bleached stuff) that's been frozen overnight. Unfortunately, we can't find raw tripe here so we use the canned Trippet brand (found at most small pet supply shops).

luckypenny,
My pet store has Raw Green Tripe frozen in approx 2" squares and packaged in 3lbs bags. only ingredient is unbleaches,uncooked frosen fresh tripe. I'm in north eastern Ontario. The tripe is from a Alberta company called K-9 choice foods inc. maybe you can try there website for a place to buy near you www.k9choicefoods.com

on a second note, anyone know if catfish is safe raw for dogs? we catch them all the time and throw them back because we don't eat them, but if I can feed them to the dog that would be an awesome cheep way to get him a whole and fresh fish source.